Whispered Goodbyes
by Cade Draconi
Summary: After a mission steals the life of one of the most beloved X-Men, her friends must cope with their whispered goodbyes. Character Death!


Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel or X-Men Evolution, but I do truly admire/like/wish to be Rogue...Or Nightcrawler...

Warning: This story is really, really flippin' sad- at least, I'm sad for writing it. I will consider this a personal goal to get through typing this without sobbing.

R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K R+G K+K

"We are gathered here today to pay our final respects to one of our own. She sacrificed herself, in a noble and loving act, to ensure the survival of not only her teammates, but the citizens of this city, state, and even country. She died a hero, and will be remembered as one, by her friends, family, and team." Dressed in a black suit and sporting a black ribbon on his chair, Charles Xavier bowed his head. The rest of the crowd followed suit.

"I first ask of you all a moment of silence, to remember how this young girl touched each and every one of us." Almost all of those attending were crying. Some, like Kitty Pryde, sobbed openly, while next to her, Kurt wept silently. Fresh tears rolled down his face as he remembered the note _she_ had left him;

_Hey, Kurt._

_If you're reading this, then Irene was right._

Irene, better known as Destiny, for her ability to predict the future.

_Don't be mad at her. It's not her fault. It's your life, don't waste it hating people. Try to remember the good times, instead. Like remember that time that you finally managed to ask Kitty out on a date, and I walked in on you two? I must have been nauseous for three days, but I remember being happy that you two were together. _

_You were like a brother to me, Kurt. You protected me, you comforted me, you drove away all of the guy-friends I ever had- except the X-Men, of course..._

_I wish I had another choice. I don't want to die, Kurt. I don't want to be forgotten. The heros in the books and movies, they always say that they're not scared, that they just want to do what's right. I'm scared out of my mind, Kurt. But there's no other choice, no alternative. Just don't be sad for me, Kurt. Be happy for me, and maybe a little proud, too. I've gotten to live life they way I wanted to, and now it's up to me to make sure you all can, too. If it's not too interfering for me to say so, tell Jean and Scott Congratulations for me. They deserve each other. And please keep what you've got with Kitty. I don't this anyone else has ever made me both physically ill and bursting with pride at the same time. So live, Kurt, and be happy. _

_And never, ever forget me._

She told him not to blame anyone. She told him not to be sad. She told him, in her own, special way, to get on with it, and he hated her for it.

Yet he loved her with all his heart.

Beside the bereaved blue elf, Kitty was shuddering with strange, ripping sobs. This was the first time she had left her room since the mission where _she_ had died. She couldn't accept it, at first. She kept asking why the others cried, why no one would tell her where her friend was. Then, when the group had gotten home, she had seen _her _door. That's when she broke down, gave up the act. She had started screaming, crying for her friend to come back. Logan had to carry her to another room, an unused dorm. He sat with her for a few days, as did the others, but one by one, they all left her alone, driven away by the unending, heart-wracked crying. She hadn't even left when they went to retrieve the body. It took them three days after the mission to find the letters, three of them. Kurt had taken his without a word, porting off to his room silently. After deliberation, they managed to convince him to take the one addressed to Kitty to her. He stayed with her while she read the letter, and then until the service-no one was willing to call it a funeral.

_Kitty,_

_You were my first and best friend, here or anywhere else. You probable wouldn't have guessed it, but half the time you were the only this keeping me from giving up and quitting the whole thing, You kept me sane- well, at least I wasn't psychotic. Do you remember the time I lost control of myself, and I got stuck in the infirmary, then you got sick and had to come down too? I remember Kurt sneaking us both those weird German candies when Dr. McCoy wasn't looking. You ate yours in front of him to be polite, and I just stuck mine under the pillow. _

_I don't want you to be sad, Kitty. Would it sound arrogant to ask you not to curl up in a ball of misery? Even if it does, please don't. For my sake and yours._

That was the day Kitty stopped screaming.

_You meant a lot to me, Kitty, even if I never said or showed it. So thanks, Kitty. Thanks for your friendship. Thanks for your help. Thanks for your acceptance, your never-ending laughs and jokes, for you. Thank you, Kitty, for being the one to be my friend. _

Finally, an eternity later, Xavier raised his head. "And now, I ask that we each pay our final respects to the one who brought us together today. As the mourners lined up, he rolled forward and bent his face of her cold body. "Goodbye, dear child. You will be a hero, always." He placed the X-Symbol from her suit, worn down on one edge by her nervous fingering of it on missions, on her chest, between her crossed arms before straightening up and rolling away to the side.

Next, Kurt stepped forward, making no move to wipe away the tears which spilled down his furry cheeks. "Auf Wiedersehen, liebe Schwester. Ich könnte dich nie vergessen," he murmured to her, slipping two things into her hands. The first was a gift card for the burger stand her visited daily. When he decided that that alone was tacky, he added a photograph of the two of them, after a day at the ice rink. It was one of the few times she looked happy. With damp, black streaks staining his face, he walked away.

After him waited Kitty. She stroked _her_ hand gently, with two fingers, before tying a friendship bracelet onto her right wrist. "Look," she whispered, "just like you taught me. See? I'm wearing mine, too, still. I'll wear it forever, if you want." That was all she could choke out before she ran away. She fled to Kurt's arms, sobbing and shaking. He held her close, crying into her hair and swaying.

Still clutching Scott's hand for support, Jean Grey stepped up to the casket. The words on _her _last letter floated through Jean's mind as clearly as if she was reading them from a page in front of her.

_Jean_

_I know we never really got along that well, what with you being popular, smart, and beautiful,but I wish we had been closer friends. You were always amazingly nice, and ever-willing to help out a friend in need, even me. You never gave up, and you fought to win. That night, with Duncan's party and...all that happened afterwards...I remember thinking about you after, and admiring how strong you were. When the same happened to me, I completely lost myself to it, and I can remember marveling over how incredible it was that you could stay so close to yourself. Thinking back, I don't think you ever said a harsh word to anyone. I hope you and Scott are happy together. _

Jean brushed a stray lock of hair out of _her_ eyes. "I'm so sorry it was like this. Goodbye, friend." Ever-so-gently, Jean reached around and clasped a charm around _her_ neck. As the end of the necklace, a broken circle held the words, "-nds forever!" Around Jean's own neck hung the rest- "Best frie-"

Finally, Scott stepped forward. He hadn't gotten a letter. He hadn't needed one. She had already told him everything.

"_Scared?" the girl teased. _

_Kitty hung her head sheepishly. "A little. What if something goes wrong?"_

_The girl held out an arm. "Need a hug?" Kitty blinked- her friend was never this affectionate. Still, Kitty took advantage of the opening and hugged her friend hard. After a moment, Kitty let go and looked up. She could have sworn there was a tear in her friend's eyes, but the older girl blinked, and it was gone. _

"_It'll be cake. Absolutely easy. No problem." her friend promised her. _

_It _was _easy. The few traps in their way were avoided, and the only injury was when Jean caught a finger on the barbed wire. Finally, the group reached the final door. _

_Scott was in command. "Alright, Kitty, you sneak in and set the bomb, then we escape and I set the bomb off from a distance. The chain reaction destroys the portal and all of the spawn. We fly home, mission accomplished."_

"_Won't work."_

_Scott turned on her. "What do you mean it won't work?"_

"If you get close enough to actually set off the bomb, they'll see you and just destroy it. The only way this will work is if someone sets off the bomb while they hold it and run to the portal."

_Scott paled. "What...why didn't you tell me this before?"_

"Because then you would have stopped me."

_He started to speak, then was cut off when she kissed him. Softly, lightly, and for less than a second, but it was enough to make him understand. _

"_How long?" he croaked._

"_Forever. Goodbye, Scott," she whispered, then grabbed the bomb and launched herself out the door._

"_Wait! No-"_

Tears slid down Scott's face. Three of them, colored scarlet and looking like blood, escaped his oppressing fingers and dripped down onto the pillow, next to _her_ head. Instead of the normal *plip, plip, plip* of tears, the drops solidified into crystal and plunked down next to _her_.

_The white light rushed towards them as they fled. Just as they flew away, a second, orange-yellow explosion began. In his head, Scott heard her voice._

"_Goodbye, Scott. Remember me. I don't want to be forgotten..."_

_In those last moments, in the fear and panic she felt, her voice slipped back into it's old, southern-belle accent._

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her cold, frozen mouth. After a moment, he pulled back.

"I love you too, Rogue."

FIN!

First off, I am immensely proud. This is my first ever -completed- FF, and I even managed to write it without bursting into tears. I like the way it turned out, even if I support Rambit (?) more than Rott (again, ?).

A few notes:

Irene/Destiny was Rogue's guardian before her powers manifested. When she heard about the mission, she contacted Rogue and told her everything, with the promise that Rogue couldn't tell anyone else.

The seemingly random '_her_'s in italics are just the way of showing Rogue apart from the others. I couldn't very well say her bloody name, could I?

The mission was that a dimensional portal had been set up and overloaded, allowing little demons through, called spawn. If the portal was destroyed, it would cause a huge chain reaction.

I am going to add a bonus chapter to this in ten days- If you think it'll ruin the story, don't hesitate to tell me so. I'm not too sure about it, so input would be appreciated.

If you review, I will pledge my undying faithfulness to your stories- that includes reviewing them, too. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours, and all that.


End file.
